Irrigating cereals helps to protect wheat potential amid dry spell

• One of driest starts to Spring since 1836

• Pay extra attention to crop management 

• More rain needed for yield potential

Norfolk grower Michael Wilton started irrigating cereals to protect yield potential following a dry March with only 13mm of rain.

Mr Wilton manages the Stody Estate’s acreage in north Norfolk alongside 600ha of contract farmland. Crops look well but with little rain and 80kg of nitrogen to be washed into the soil’s profile, irrigation quickly became his number one priority.

“It’s the biggest challenge we’ve got at the moment,” he says.

“Though we will be making case-by-case decisions, spring barley and those winter wheat crops with the highest potential will be the top priorities. We also have onions, potatoes and sugar beet in the ground.”

Southern England recorded just 16% of its average expected rainfall during March, according to provisional Met Office statistics. Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire saw their top three driest Marches since 1836.

Desperately dry

Local BASF agronomy manager Hugo Pryce said: “It’s desperately dry in the east and there’s little rain in the forecast. Crops are starting to lose tillers, and with them, yield potential.”

The Stody Estate produces winter wheat for the seed market. This spring, it has SY Cheer, LG Beowulf, KWS Arnie, KWS Dawsum and some pre-basic seed in the ground.

All have good resistance scores against yellow rust – which may explain why Mr Wilton has not seen any tell-tale pustules in his crops. Septoria is present but wasn’t active during dry conditions during April.

“We’re quite clean but we still apply a strong fungicide when wheat gets to the right growth stage,” says Mr Wilton. Strong genetics and no visible yellow rust mean a focus on T1 rather than T0 applications, he adds.

“My view – which doesn’t change from season to season – is that T1 is a very important building block for the rest of programme and needs to be robust.”

Strong efficacy

“I’m looking at Inatreq (fenpicoxamid) plus RevyPro on those crops with the highest potential.  RevyPro with its two actives, is a very attractive mix partner – while the Revysol rate is a little lower, there’s some prothioconazole in the formulation.”

BASF’s RevyPro contains 50 g/l Revysol and 100 g/l prothioconazole and has strong efficacy on a broad range of diseases such as Septoria, yellow rust and brown rust, and good activity on eyespot.

“The season can quickly turn,” says Mr Pryce. “If you don’t establish a solid foundation, you can end up chasing disease – a battle you’re likely to lose.  But, if you start with a strong T1, and disease pressure remains low, there is always the option to reduce rates at T2.”

Independent bodies like NIAB recognise Revysol as the most effective azole available and it will protect chemistry like fenpicoxamid which applies stronger selection pressure and is at a higher risk of resistance development,” adds Mr Pryce.

Disease pressure

With the irrigators in the field, Mr Wilton says he wanted to turn a ‘dry season’ into a ‘wet season’ and needed to ensure his fungicides reflected the impact on disease pressure.

“A few years ago, we were involved in a trial and saw a tenfold increase in the amount of Septoria genetic material present in the irrigated winter wheat,” he explains.

Mr Pryce explains why: “Irrigation will create ‘rain splash’ and spread the Septoria up the plants – but with a robust T1, Michael has the increased pressure covered.”

Mr Wilton says the near-average start to this season might have been a saving grace. “We’re able to manage the biomass we’ve got, he says.

“Had crops come out of the winter, large and forward this spring, we would now be struggling a bit with available moisture and nitrogen uptake I’m not disappointed with where we’ve ended up, but the need for rain is more critical.”